


The House of Pomegrenates

by Dienda



Category: Hannibal (TV)
Genre: Adoption, Children, Kid Fic, M/M, Original Character(s), Tooth-Rotting Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-07-26
Updated: 2014-07-25
Packaged: 2018-02-10 10:46:09
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,085
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2022210
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dienda/pseuds/Dienda
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Matthew and Will are the parents of two children. Series of one-shots. Shameless fluff.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Oliver is asleep between them, his back against Will’s side and his little hands wrapped around Matthew’s arm. The August night is warm and the humming of the night insects can be heard through the open window.

Will and Matthew are still awake; somewhere between sleep and the quiet aestival heat. They trade looks and murmurs, words that flutter around the lull of their son’s breathing.

*

Today was the first time Oliver called Matt ‘daddy’. He was in his office, wrestling words into a story while Will drew a bath for the boy.

“Ollie!” came Will’s voice from the bathroom, followed by the scattering of little feet in the hall.

Matthew rose from the desk and, as he opened the door, Oliver crashed into his knees.

“Daddy, please, no” said the little voice, clinging to his knees.

In all the months they’d had Oliver at home he’d never called Matthew anything. Will had received a shy, mumbled ‘papa’ a few times but the boy ―barely older than a baby― always kept quiet around Matthew. He wondered ―feared― if maybe Oliver could somehow see what was inside him, if instinct told him Matthew was dangerous, a half-tamed beast.

“What’s wrong, darling?” asked Matt as he picked him up.

Will appeared from the bathroom, sleeves rolled up and arms wet. “He doesn’t want his bath.”

The boy shook his head against the crook of his neck.

“You were playing with the dogs, baby. You need to clean up, there’s mud in your hair. You can’t go to bed like that,” Matt told him.

“I don’t wanna.”

“Come on, you always enjoy your bath. Please?” He nuzzled the dirty curls. “For me? You can make lots of bubbles; I promise you’ll like it.”

Ollie nodded his head with a pout.

Matt kissed his cheek. “Good, go with papa, I’ll tell you a story when you’re finished.”

The boy clung to him again. “No, you.”

“Ollie, your dad is working, come with me,” coaxed Will.

“Daddy, please.”

Matthew beamed at his son. “I can use a break.”

*

In the bath, Oliver had played quietly with his plastic fish while Matthew washed his hair and cleaned his skin. When they were done he insisted Matt dried him and helped him into his pajamas.

Will shrugged with a smile. “I guess there’s only dad tonight.”

When he still refused to let go of Matt after his bedtime story they ended up taking him to bed with them.

*

Now, in the darkness, Matthew’s eyes fill up and tremble until tears roll down his temple to his hair.

Will reaches out to wipe it away with a worried frown. “Hey, what’s wrong, babe? Are you okay?”

If asked, they’d say they chose Oliver because he looks like he could be their son; he has their dark, curling hair and Will’s blue eyes. The truth is they’d both seen themselves in the child. Matt had seen the crowded loneliness from his own years in an orphanage, and Will had recognised himself in the sad mildness that marred the boy’s demeanour.

Matthew keeps silent; the pain in his throat swells and extends to his chest. He doesn’t speak until he’s sure his voice won’t break.

“When I was growing up.” He doesn’t remember being as small as Oliver but he can still see a short, thin boy, cast out and angry, almost feral; so easily hurt before he decided to forge himself in steel. “Between the orphanage and the hospital and juvie, I always figured that would be my life. I’d stay away from everyone and I’d destroy everything I could until I was caught or put down. I wasn’t supposed to have something like this, like him.”

Will shifts closer, covers Oliver’s hands with his own.

“But you do, Matthew; you have him and you have me.”

“I shouldn’t, not after everything.”

“Especially after everything.”

Matt rubs his eyes and let out a breathless chuckle. “I doesn’t seem real.”

Will nods with a tremulous smile. “I know, sometimes I fear none of―” He stops. “But it is.” He tugs at Matthew’s shoulder until he rolls on his side. “It is. We’re not alone anymore, neither of us.”

They reach out for each other in a chaste touch of lips, Oliver theirs and perfect between them.


	2. Chapter 2

The clear sound of Amy’s babbling comes from the baby monitor. It’s 3 am.

Will rolls over to his side but Matthew is already sitting on the edge of the mattress, rubbing his eyes. “I’ll go.”

A few moments later there’s the sound of tiny hands clapping and Matthew’s voice comes through the small speaker. “Hey, what’s my baby girl doing awake?”

Will settles back with a sigh and half listens as Matt tries to get their daughter to go back to sleep.

“You’re dry; are you hungry?”

There’s a burst of delighted laughter; her father must have bounced her.

“Hush that, miss, you’ll wake your brother up.”

Will smiles; he hears as Matthew crosses the hall and goes downstairs to prepare a bottle. Judging by the soft murmuring, Amy’s gone along for the ride. He’s almost gone back to sleep when the creaking of the rocking chair makes him blink his eyes again.

Matthew is humming lightly, laughing softly at times, whenever Amelia’s vocalising interrupts his song. After a couple of minutes, he stops. “You’re not going back to sleep, are you?”

The rocking chair creaks again and seconds later their bedroom door opens and Matt comes in with their baby in arms.

“She’s not wet, she’s not hungry. Do you think she’s sick?”

Will sits up against the headboard and takes the girl from his partner. He touches his lips to her forehead; she’s not warm. Next he probes gently at her belly to see if there’s any discomfort. What he gets is a string of ‘dadadada’ and his fingers caught in two tiny fists. He snorts. “She’s fine.”

“She’s been sleeping through the night for almost two months now.” Matt flops down beside them. He sighs. “I think she’s just not in the mood for sleeping tonight, wilful little thing.”

“That is not alright, young woman,” Will tells her in his sternest tone.

Matthew pokes her little foot with his finger. “Go to sleep.”

She lets out another laugh and kicks her feet against Will’s ribs. “Damn, thanks Matt.” She keeps kicking her legs when he holds her ankles in one hand. “Hey, hey.”

There’s a stuffed giraffe on Will’s nightstand, Amy reaches for it as soon as he takes it; he gives her the toy and lays her down on the bed, between them.

“More singing?” suggest Mathew.

“It can’t hurt.”

They launch into a medley of lullabies and old ballads while their daughter gums the giraffe’s face, eyes still open.

“Is my little sister sick?” comes a sleepy voice from the doorway.

Ollie is standing in his pajamas, eyes half open and dark curls everywhere.

“No, she’s fine, pal. Did we wake you?”

A small nod; without prompting, he crawls onto the bed and settles against Matthew, mindful of his sister.

“She just doesn’t want to go to bed,” explains Will with a helpless expression.

“Amelia, go to sleep,” says her big brother firmly. Matt curls around him and kisses his hair with a chuckle.

“We already tried that, buddy.”

“I’ll show you,” the little boy continues in a whisper. “Close your eyes,” he shuts his own eyes tightly. “And keep very still, like this.”

Will and Matt look at each other and try not to laugh.

“More singing?”

“Maybe a story.”

Matt tells them the story of an anonymous, completely unrelated baby giraffe that refused to go to sleep one night.

*

Half an hour later, both children are asleep. Will and Matthew blink sluggishly at each other.

“Should we get them back to their rooms?”

“Leave them.”

“The books say we shouldn’t encourage this sort of behaviour.”

Will snorts. “Like we don’t let them get away with everything.”

“We have to be strict.”

“I’m too tired to be strict now. We’ll be strict tomorrow, babe; I promise.”

“Alright.”


	3. Chapter 3

Amy has been having nightmares. It started a week ago when they went to the supermarket and, while they were waiting at the checkout queue, she overheard another child speaking about monsters in his room.

“Papa, is it true monsters can hide under the bed?” she asked from her purple car seat as they drove back home.

“No, baby, monsters aren’t real” Will assured her.

“Are you sure?”

“Yes.”

“But what if they are?”

“Then they won’t get anywhere near our house.” He reached back and squeezed her foot. “The dogs will keep them away.”

That night, Will woke up to the flutter of small steps and the rustling of sheets as Amy crawled onto the bed between Matthew and him. He remembered the conversation and snuggled her without a word.

It happened again the next evening.

And the next.

They tried to convince her in every possible way that her room was perfectly safe and absolutely monster-free. Even her brother guaranteed, with the wisdom of his superior age, that monsters do not exist.

They tried a nightlight and letting one of the dogs sleep on the floor by her bed. They tried music and funny bedtime stories. They ended up with nightly checks under the bed.

The monsters prevailed.

*

Tonight Amy outright refuses to go to sleep. Matthew’s told her a story and tucked her in but when he turns to go she clings to his neck.

“Daddy, please don’t go; I want to stay up, please.”

She starts crying despite his reassurances and his promises to cuddle her until she falls asleep. Will is heading for her room, Oliver trailing behind him, when Matthew comes out, girl in arms and a thunderous expression on his face.

“That’s it!” he says with enough force that Amelia stops crying. Matthew hands the sniffling toddler to Will and storms down the stairs.

Will’s barely started whispering soothing words into her hair when Matt comes back; he has the lid of their biggest pot in one hand and Will’s Stillson wrench in the other.

“I’m going to get rid of that blasted monster once and for all.” He gives them a forlorn look. “Don’t forget about me if I don’t return; I loved you all.” With that he goes into Amy’s room and slams the door behind him.

Will’s so stunned he can’t even manage to burst out laughing. Amy hides her face in his neck and he can feel Ollie’s hands cling to his pajama pants.

A moment later there’s some rustling behind the door and the sound of the bed being dragged, followed by a clash and a screech. Their daughter tightens her hold around Wills neck and his son hugs his waist.

“Leave my children alone, you wretched thing!”

Will has to bite the inside of his cheek to keep a straight face.

Matthew lets out what can only be described as a battle scream and something falls to the floor.

Amy tugs Will’s shirt.

“Papa, what if the monster eats my daddy?” she’s on the verge of tears again.

“It won’t, sweetheart.”

There are a series of thumps and two loud bangs against the door.

 

Silence.

 

Maybe the monster did eat Matthew.

 

Suddenly, the door flies open to their collective gasp. Matt tumbles out and falls on his knees in front of them; his hair is a mess and both his tank and the lid are stained with what looks like blood.

“The monster’s gone; it fought savagely but good prevailed.” He lets out a shaky sigh. “This knight needs a healing kiss from his princess and his prince.” The kids fall on him cheering; peppering his face with kisses. “And one from his king.”

Will snorts.

“You’re insane,” he leans down to give Matthew a kiss.

*

After all the excitement it takes them almost an hour to get the children in bed. When they’re finally asleep, Matthew collapses on their own mattress and giggles to himself. Will crawls over him.

“Is this real blood, you mad man?”

“Will, you can’t beat realism; I pricked my finger with a pin.”

“You’re unbelievable.” He laughs. He leans down leaves a trail of kisses down Matt’s jaw. “My knight in shining armor.”

Matt cocks an eyebrow and smirks. “So, do I get a reward for slaying the beast?”

“It’s only fair to compensate a knight.”

 

It’s their turn to keep each other awake at night.


End file.
